Locomotive smoke-box arrangement



'INVENTOR.

F. GRIFFIN LOCOMOTIVE SMOKE BOX ARRANGEMENT Flled June 20, 1925 July 31, 1928.

1m M7 A TTORNE Y.

- arrangement for the accommodation of feed Patented July 31,. 19 28., d

UNITED STATES PATENT: OFFICE.

. aosnrn r. GRIFFIN, or rnauncx, nnw mnsmi, nssrenon 'ro 'rrm am I roman-2,101 NEWIYORK, N. Y. I

LOCOMOTIVE snoxn-r'ox annanenunn'r.

I Application filed June 2c, 1925. Serial m. 38,506.

My invention relates to locomotives, and

has particular reference to the front end water heaters. I

Locomotive feed. water heaters, either -of the closed or open type, utilize the exhaust steam from the main engine of the locom0- tive for heating the feed water, and for the purposes of illustrating my invention I have shown a heater of the closed type, the construction details of which form no part of the present invention, and'whiehneed not Y be described in detail. In this type of heater the feed water is pumped through a nest of tubes in the heater to the boiler, and during its passage through the heater is brought to the desired temperature by condensing exhaust steam admitted to the outside casing of the heater surrounding the tube nest.

The condensate from the heater is objectionable if drained to the track or returned to the exhaust pipe of the locomotive, and it is therefore usually drained by gravity into the locomotive tender, or to the pump suction line. that the heater be placed above the water level in the tender, and it is also necessary because of clearance limits to keep the heater below. a certain fixed level. ,Because of these restrictions andother restrictions imposed by- -the location of theexistingnp'paratuson the locomotive, it has been found most satisfactory to mount the heater in-the majority of cases transversely of the smokebox at its forward end. p s

With the heater located m this pos1tion it is necessary to bring the pipe which sup, plies steam to the heater from the engine exhaust pipe through the wall of the loco'mo-' tive smokebox, and mylinvention contemplates an improvement in the pip arrangement whereby the*diflicult1es; d% the present installation may be eliminated. I

As illustrative of m invention,'I, have shown a preferred em odiment in the accompanying drawings in' which;

Fig. 1 is a view in levation,.-partly in section, of the forward end of a locomotive on which a heater is transversel mounted. Fig. 2 is a transverse front e evation of Fig. 1 with the lower portion of the smoke- .box-cover broken away for the sake of clearness, and, I

Fig. 3 is a detail of construction ,on a

For this reason it is necessary larger scale of a portion of the structure Ordinarily the heater 18 carried .in front of the stack and mounted onthe upper ortion of the cylindrical smokebox we .5,

through which the steam pipes 13 must be carried if the heater is to be connected with the exhaust pipe 14. T1118 necessitates the passage of, the pipes, 13 through a cylindrical surface and where the pipes pass through this curved surface itis difiicult to prevent' airleaks; into the smokebox, which results in an impairment of the draft produced by the engine exhaust. To avoid these joints through the curved portion of the smokebox wall, it has been proposed to tap the engine exhaust passages outside the smokebox'and bring the pipes 13 up to the heater around the outside of the smokebox, but.

this arrangement not only produces an unsightly appearance, but-necessitates a heavy I lagging for .the

partial condensatlon of the steam as'sing flhrough these pipes before it .reac es the eater.

ipe 13, and results :in' a In order to obviatethis dificulty and at the same time to simplify the piping arrangement, I propose by my invention to mount the heater forwardly of the smoke box on suitablelbrackets 16, which may be formed as heater somewhat and lace a longer heater on the locomotive w ile still remaining within the clearance limit, and at the same artof the smokebox front endsheet 17. his enables me to lower the ing19 in front of the smokebox front 17. Asv illustrated in Fig. 2, I have shown a form in which the passage 18' converges downwardly to a single central opening, but it will be obvious that if desired two or more separate openings may be provided.

By this arrangement the opening 19 may have provided around it a flat flanged portion 20, which maybe suitably secured to the flat smokebox front, as by studs 21, and

the joint between the smokebox front and theheater casing kept airtight by means of a suitable gasket 22. A boss 23 extends inwardly through a suitable opening cut in the smokebox front and provides a connection within the smokebox to which a steam'pipe can be suitably secured as by the studs 24. It is desirable thatthe central portion of the smokebox be kept free of obstructing pipes in order that access may be had through the front end of the locomotive to the forward boiler tube sheet 25, andto the usual superheater units 26. lVith the arrangement contemplated by my invention, this desirable object is accomplished by leading ,the steam pipes 13, upwardly within the smokebox near the periphery thereof from the exhaust pipe 14 to the point where connection to the heater opening 19 is made through a T 27. The pi cs 13 when placed in this; position leave t e smokebox as unobstructed as formerly, as they do not extend inwardly from the smokebox Walls further than the existing main steam pipes 28 leading from the boiler to the engine, as may readily be seen from .an inspection of Fig. 2. By this arrangestack where they will not interfere either with the main steam pipes leading from the boiler to the engine, nor form an obstruction preventingeasy access to the forward tube sheet of the boiler, or to the .superheater" header and units lying between the tube sheet and the stack.

This arrangement furthermore provides a means whereby the heater may be most advantageously placed, and the steam connection thereto made through the flat surfaceof the smokebox front end sheet, ratherthan through the curved surface of the smokebox,

and both steam joints and the joint between the steam ipe and smokebox shell may be made in a orm which is, readily kept tight.-.

What I claim is: I 1. In apparatus of the class described, a locomotive smokebox having a front end sheet and the usual engine exhaust pipe therein, a feed water heater located forward of said end sheet and having a flanged steam around an opening therein, and asteam' pipe leadin upwardly through said smokebox near t e periphery thereof and connecting said exhaustpipe with said 'inlet.

inlet adapted to be sepured to said end sheet 2. In apparatus of the, class described, a

locomotive smokebox having a front end sheet and the usual engine exhaust pipe' therein, a feed water heater located forward of said end sheet and having a steain inlet adapted. to be secured to said sheet around an opening therein, and a pair of steam pipes leadmg upwardly through said smokebox substantiallyat the periphery thereofand joining in their upper ends in a common connectlon secured to sa d inlet.

3. In apparatus of the class described, the.

combination with a locomotive smokebox front end sheet having an opfning therein, of a pair of supporting brac ets secu'red to said sheet, and a feed water heater mounted on said brackets outside the smokebox, said heater including a casing having a flat flanged steam inlet secured to said sheet 7 around the openin therein and providing a steam connection smokebox. I

JOSEPH F. GRIFFIN;

or said heater within the w 

